


Together Through It All

by orphan_account



Category: TWRP | Tupper Ware Remix Party (Band)
Genre: Dark, Depression, F/M, Gen, Getting Help, M/M, mental health
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-25
Updated: 2020-03-22
Packaged: 2021-02-28 06:01:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 9,310
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22929130
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: After Sung has some relationship problems, he starts a downward spiral. Havve, Meouch, and Phobos work together to get their friend’s life back on track.
Relationships: Computer Wife & Doctor Sung (TWRP), Doctor Sung & Alyx (OC)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 9





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> First of all, I want to thank Kizumess for inspiring me to write this!
> 
> This shares its plot with the comic I’m drawing, and they both use the beginning of TWRP’s song “Computer Wife” as a starting point.

The sun was shining warmly on Sung as he relaxed in his lawn chair. He’d just gotten back from his hike through the park and was close to dozing off. Suddenly, he heard the phone ringing inside his apartment. Sung shot up out of his chair and started jogging back, when he tripped over the hose he’d used earlier to water the flowers. _Dammit! Why didn’t I put that away?_ Sung thought. He picked himself off the ground, and started running, but this time he was more careful.

By the time he got to the phone, it was too late. The call had gone to the answering machine. As if mocking him, it began its automated greeting: “Hello. No one is available to take your call. Please leave a message after the tone.” Sung glanced at the clock and noticed that it was around the time Computer Wife usually called him. _Oh well, it’ll be fine. I’ll just call her back after listening to what she needed_ , Sung cheerily thought to himself. Her message began, and the smile slowly faded from his face. “Hello. This is your Computer Wife. I’m leaving you for a new operating system.”

Sung fought back tears as he struggled to stand. What was going on? Was this a nightmare? It had to be. This couldn’t be reality. What kind of cruel world would something like this even happen in? He leaned back against the corner of the room, and slowly slid down until he was curled into a ball on the floor. As if to solidify that this was, indeed, real, Computer Wife said her last word to him. “Goodbye.” And with that, Sung couldn’t hold back anymore. He sobbed uncontrollably for what felt like days. He couldn’t bear looking through the visor of the cone that he’d designed with Computer Wife. The memories he made while wearing it... they were all tainted.


	2. Chapter 2

[One week later]

  
There was a knock at the door, but Sung didn’t have the energy to move from the couch. He could hear a muffled voice calling his name from outside, and it sounded like Meouch. “I... I should probably go and let him in,” Sung said to the empty room. He rolled off the couch and hit the floor with a thud. He grimaced as he tried to stand up, something he hadn’t done in a week. He managed to get to his feet, but as soon as he stopped holding onto the couch for support, he collapsed onto the floor again. This time, the sound was loud enough to be heard from outside. 

Sung could hear keys frantically being put into the lock of his door, and he was able to make out what Meouch was saying. “Hey Sung! Are you okay in there?!” Of course he wasn’t okay, but he didn’t want to worry Meouch any more than he already had. He tried to reply but all the crying had left his throat raw, and he was unable to say anything. He felt powerless and alone. Sung snapped back to reality and squinted as light hit his face from outside. Meouch had kicked the door in, and his jaw dropped when he saw the condition Sung was in.

Meouch ran to Sung as fast as he could, and picked him up with a grunt. Trying to lighten the mood, Meouch exclaimed, “Wow, doc! You’re really making me work out today, huh?” Then he looked at Sung’s face, turned his head away, and quietly said, “Right, not the time for jokes.” Meouch carried Sung to the car, and attempted to re-lock his apartment. It was no use. The lock had been destroyed by Meouch’s near-perfect technique. “Am I taking you back to your army days, Meouch?” Sung asked weakly. Meouch gave a strained smile in response as he buckled Sung into his seat. His friend might have been an adult, but after seeing Sung’s face when he kicked in the door... he wasn’t taking any chances. That was the look of pure despair, of a broken man.

Meouch started the car, and began driving towards the ship where the other band members were waiting. About ten minutes of awkward silence passed, and Meouch set the car on autopilot. He turned to Sung and gently said “Hey. Uh... what happened that did this to you? I’ve never seen you like this before.” Sung had been trying to be strong in front of his friend, but thinking back to what started all of this... it was too much. With his cheek pressed to the window, Sung started crying again. Meouch’s face softened, and he put a paw on Sung’s shoulder. “It’s going to be okay, I promise.” The two shared a hug, and Meouch started to tear up. His friend was in so much pain, he just wanted to help, but without knowing what caused this... it was going to be difficult. He hoped Havve and Phobos had a plan.

For the rest of the ride, Meouch only used one paw to steer, as he was using the other to comfort Sung by holding his hand. There wasn’t much else he could do until they got back to the ship. About halfway through the drive, Sung looked up at Meouch and whispered, “She left me. She left me, Meouch.”


	3. Chapter 3

Meouch looked over at a passed-out Sung in the passenger seat as he pulled into the parking lot. They’d finally arrived at the ship bay, after an hour-long drive. Meouch got out of the car, then walked around to join Havve and Phobos by the passenger door.

“Hey, Meouch... how bad was it?” asked Phobos.

“Bad. Like really bad. Like if we’re talking a scale from 0 to 10, he’s probably around a 12 right now,” Meouch replied. “I don’t think he slept all week. He passed out about halfway through the drive,” he added.

Phobos peered through the window at Sung.  
“You sure he’s still alive in there? He’s not moving at all.”

“Yeah, he’s alive. It wasn’t to _that_ level yet. I don’t want to think about what would’ve happened if I hadn’t gotten him today, though. While we’re here... Havve, can you run some diagnostics on him?”

“I mean... sure, but we should probably get him back to the ship first. I can tell from here that he’s not exactly in the most stable condition.”

Meouch and Phobos looked at Havve with concern.

“What, so you mean he might… die?” Meouch asked.

“Yes. He appears to be almost completely dehydrated. It’s honestly surprising he’s still alive. So I’d suggest we hurry.”

Havve realized that he probably shouldn’t have told them so bluntly, but there wasn’t much he could do about it now. Well... there _was_ one thing he could do. He pulled up a holographic screen from his wrist and punched in a code. The screen shut off, and Havve seemed to relax a bit. 

“Havve, what did you just do?” Phobos asked frantically.

“I called an autonomous stretcher so we can get him there as fast as possible. It’s about… three minutes away. For now, until it comes, just keep an eye on him. There’s not much else we can do in the meantime.”

“Havve… what… what do you think his chances are?” Meouch choked on his words as he said them. He was afraid to know the answer.

“If I’m being honest… they’re not good.”

“Just give us a number, please Havve!” Meouch pleaded.

“Meouch, let it go for now… We need to focus on getting him to the ship first. We have good medical equipment on board, and Havve _is_ a licensed robodoctor.” Phobos tried to reassure Meouch as best he could, but tears were starting to trickle out of his helmet. _We can’t lose him. Not after all he’s done for us._

“No, you deserve to know. His chances of survival are about one in one thousand.”


	4. Chapter 4

Phobos’ helmet flickered out of this plane of reality as he fell to his knees. Normally he had no problems keeping it in this dimension, but the shock of hearing Sung’s odds… it was a lot to take in. He stared into the distance with vacant eyes, tears starting to roll down his face.

“Y- you mean he has a zero point one percent chance of surviving this?”

“Yes, but as long as we get him to the ship as fast as possible, that number should go up. Speaking of, the stretcher is almost here. My readings say that it’s arriving in about thirty seconds.”

Meouch placed a comforting paw on Phobos’ shoulder.

“Hey. Listen to Havve on this. If anyone can save Sung, it’s him.”

“O- okay. I’ll try.”

Suddenly, a stretcher with all sorts of robotic parts attached to it came speeding towards them. It screeched to a halt next to Havve, and he gave it an affectionate pat. Havve took a step forward and said, ”Alright, no time to lose. Let’s load him on and get going.” Meouch and Phobos carefully lifted Sung out of his seat and carried him to the stretcher. He was worryingly pale, and his skin felt unusually cool and dry. Havve wasn’t kidding when he said Sung was in bad shape,  thought Meouch. Once he was on the stretcher, it beeped and Havve responded to it. “Yeah. We need to get him back to our ship. Go as fast as you can while still keeping the patient safe. We’ll be able to keep up, I promise.”

Two rocket thrusters deployed from the sides of the stretcher, and they began to rev up with a high-pitched whine. Meouch and Phobos watched in awe as it transformed into what was essentially a flying hospital bed. It sped off into the distance as Phobos readied his jetpack, Meouch got into a sprinter’s stance, and Havve started building up speed by running in place.

Meouch: “Ready...”

Phobos: “Set...”

Havve: “GO!”

Then, in unison, “LET’S GO SAVE OUR BOY!”

They took off, and Phobos was the first to reach the ship, with Meouch and Havve arriving together shortly after that. They went inside and made their way to the medical bay.

When they got there, they noticed that the stretcher had already moved Sung to the bed in the room, and was waiting patiently for them. Meouch and Phobos sat down in the chairs next to the bed and thanked the now-humanoid medical robot for helping them. Meanwhile, Havve went to get changed into his scrubs.

Havve returned to the room and started preparing an IV for Sung. “He’s going to hate this, but he needs to be changed out of his uniform and into something a bit more sterile. Don’t want anything to get infected.” Havve glanced up at the Medibot in the room. “Could you maybe do that for us? I feel like that’d be an invasion of privacy if we did it.” The robot nodded, and the boys stepped out of the care room and into the waiting area.

A few minutes later, the robot stepped out to inform them that everything went fine, and that it would be okay for them to re-enter the room. They did so, and Havve got started on Sung’s IV line. He was a trained professional, so it went quickly and easily. Finally, Sung was hooked up to the various devices that kept tabs on his vitals. An hour went by. Then two. The stress was taking its toll on all of them. Havve looked at one of the screens and if it was physically possible, he would have cried in relief. Sung was starting to stabilize.


	5. Chapter 5

Sung opened his eyes, and the first thing he noticed was a strangely sterile smell.  _ Where am I? What’s that beeping noise? The last thing I remember was being in Meouch’s car, and... I think I blacked out after that. _ As he started to shake off the last dark dregs of dreamless sleep, he sat up and began taking in his surroundings.  _ This looks like a hospital room, but I don’t see any windows, so that’s a bit strange. Actually, this kinda looks like—  _ His thoughts were cut off as the door opened and Meouch stepped into the room.

Meouch looked down at the bed, and was shocked to see that Sung was actually awake. He ducked back into the waiting area and yelled excitedly for Havve and Phobos to join him. Phobos’ face lit up with joy, and Havve’s eyes changed from their usual targeting laser red to a rosy shade of pink. Everything was going to be okay.

They walked into the room, and Sung weakly greeted them. “Hey, guys. I guess things got a bit out of hand, huh?” Havve’s eyes narrowed and their color shifted to a deep scarlet. 

“Don’t you  _ ever _ do something that stupid ever again. Do you know just how close you were to dying?! Your chances of survival were one in  _ one  thousand_ _!_ Yeah, you made it, but just barely. Not only is that hard on me, it’s extremely hard on Phobos and Meouch. Meouch wouldn’t leave your side until I got you all set up in here, and Phobos was out in the waiting area having a mental breakdown because he didn’t think you’d make it! What the hell even _happened_ to you? You _damn well_ better have a good excuse.”

Meouch smacked Havve on the back of the head. 

“Hey, what the hell was  _ that _ for, Meouch?”

“Give him a break, Havve. The man just had a near-death experience. And, as for what caused this... Sung, do you want to tell them or should I?”

“It’s okay. I can tell them. I- I can be strong.”

“Alright, chief.”

Meouch walked over to the side of the bed, and placed a supportive paw on Sung’s shoulder.

Sung took a shaky breath and began:

“A couple days ago... Computer Wife called me and left a message. She said she was leaving me. And that was it, she just said goodbye. She didn’t even tell me to my face. I... I couldn’t handle it. I don’t think I moved an inch until Meouch came and got me. What I don’t understand is how I ended up in such bad condition after only a couple days.”

Meouch looked down with concern.

“Sung... it wasn’t a couple days. It was an entire _week_.”

Sung’s eyes widened and he stared off into nothingness for a few seconds. He hung his head in shame.

“I guess I really am pathetic, huh? Sorry you guys had to go through all that trouble.”

“Sung, you take that back right now. You went through some  serious shit. It’s understandable that you were so upset. And don’t apologize. We all need help sometimes, it’s not something to be ashamed of.”

Meouch gave Sung’s shoulder a squeeze and stood up.

“We’re your friends. It’s our duty to make sure you’re okay. Right guys?”

“Right!”

“See? We care about you. You’re not a burden to us.”

Sung started to tear up.  _ They really feel that way about me? They don’t see me as a hassle to deal with? What did I do to deserve such good friends? There’s no way I could ever hope to repay them for something like this. _

“Shit. I thought that’d make you feel better. Sorry, doc.”

“These are happy tears, Meouch. Thank you so much, I really appreciate it. I don’t know why you care about someone like me so much, but... I’m happy that you do.”

“Well that’s an easy answer. You’re a cool dude, and you always do your best to help people out. Despite your flaws, you’re still one of my favorite people. You’re a good person and a good friend.”

_ I’m... a good person? I’m... a good friend? Really? They really think that? But they have to put up with all the shit I do... and they still think that? How? Why? Don’t they know that I’ll just let them down in the end? _

His thoughts trailed off as he noticed that Phobos had started talking. “We’ll care about you no matter what, bud. You mean a lot to me, no, to _all_ of us.” Phobos gave Havve a little nudge.

“Sorry for yelling at you earlier. I was so scared that you wouldn’t make it. I couldn’t bear the thought of losing you. Like Phobos said, you mean a lot to all of us. We love you for who you are, Sung. We accept you and all of your flaws. They’re a part of who you are, and I wish you’d accept yourself, too. Life’s too short to hate yourself. That’s why we’re going to get you to love yourself eventually. It’s not going to be a fast process, but it sure as hell is going to be worth it. You deserve to be happy, no matter how much you might think otherwise.”


	6. Chapter 6

As the days went by, Sung’s condition began to improve. By the time a week had passed, he didn’t feel like absolute shit every single second he was awake. He didn’t feel great, but... it was a start. He’d gotten back to working out, and it was helping to improve his mood a little bit. On day 10, Havve finally deemed him healthy enough to spend the night in his actual room on the ship. Despite this, he wasn’t allowed to keep the door shut, as someone needed to keep an eye on him at all times. It was frustrating, given he was doing much better than before.

Later, in the cafeteria, Sung asked Meouch about it, and took a sip of his hot milk as he waited for a response. Meouch tried to think of the best way to put it, but came up empty handed. 

“Look man, it’s not that we think you’re going to try anything, it’s just that we’re concerned for your safety. You sat on that couch for a week without taking care of yourself. If I hadn’t gone out there and kicked in your door... I don’t want to think about what would have happened.”

Sung glanced up at Meouch as he stirred some honey into his milk.

“I would have fucking died, Meouch. You don’t have to sugarcoat it. We all know how close of a call it was, Havve made  _ that _ pretty clear, but it doesn’t mean you all have to treat me like I’m going to up and kill myself!”

Meouch was taken aback by the sudden hostility from Sung.  _ Did I really piss him off that much by telling him I care about him? I’m just trying to help, I’m not sure what else I can do for him right now. _

“Woah, woah, woah, let’s maybe calm down a bit there. I’m just saying that, as your friend, I don’t want to let anything bad happen to you.”

“And I’m saying that, while I appreciate that you care, I wish you’d stop treating me like I’m in the same mental state as I was then. That was me at my absolute lowest, right when something terrible happened to me! I’m not going to be like that for the rest of my life! I’m relatively stable now, I don’t need to be on fucking suicide watch, Meouch!”

Sung stood up and slammed his mug down onto the battered stainless steel table. Hundreds of cracks spread through its surface, but it didn’t shatter. As Sung stormed off, a shard of the mug fell off, and milk spilled out onto the table. Meouch’s face hit the hard metal as tears streaked down his cheeks. The milk flowed towards him, and he couldn’t resist. He sadly lapped it up as Sung’s angry echoing footsteps faded into the distance.  _ What am I going to do? No, scratch that, what are  ** we ** going to do? I don’t know where he is, and it sounded like he was heading for the exit. Havve has access to the cameras, but he’s probably not monitoring them right now. I’m going to be in a lot of trouble with those two when I tell them what happened... I just wanted to make him feel better. I didn’t know that’s how he felt about this whole situation. But now, he’s off somewhere doing who knows what. We need to find him, and fast. _

* * *

Havve paced back and forth in the briefing room. His eyes were a mix of purple and deep scarlet, which corresponded to fear and anger, respectively. 

“What the fuck do you mean you _lost him?!_ You were in the cafeteria with him, what the hell  happened, Meouch?!”

Meouch hung his head in shame. 

“Well... I was trying to explain why we had to keep an eye on him, and he yelled at me and stomped away. I was really upset, so I had my head down on the table, and that’s why I didn’t see where he went. I’m so sorry, Havve!”

Havve sighed, and his eyes faded to a dark blue:  _ regret_.

“Meouch... I... I’m sorry. You did your best. I shouldn’t have yelled at you. C’mere, bud. Let me give you a hug.” Havve and Meouch shared a tender hug. After a few seconds, Havve pulled away, and it was back to the business at hand. “Thank you for telling me right away. That means we’ll be able to get a head start on looking for him.”

Havve tapped the side of his head, and a holographic screen was projected in front of his right eye. “Ah good, I see the headset is working perfectly, Phobos. Where are you right now?”

“Uh... I’m about a mile above the ship, why? What’s goin’ on, Havve?”

“Sung made a run for it, and we don’t know what direction he went. Would you mind flying around a bit to see if you can either spot him or get some info about where he went? That would be a huge help right now.”

“Oh shit, are you serious? Wasn’t Meouch with him?”

“That’s a long story that we don’t have time to go into right now. Are you able to do that?”

“Yeah, sure. I’m heading down now, Havve. I’ll see what I can see around here.”

“Roger that.”

Havve tapped the side of his head again, and the screen disappeared.

“Well, this is a big fucking problem we’ve got on our hands, isn’t it?”


	7. Sung on the Run

Phobos had been searching for at least ten hours. Sung was nowhere to be found. But... he couldn’t stand the idea of going back to the ship and reporting his failure to Havve and Meouch. He was determined not to go back until he found Sung.

* * *

Sung stumbled into the bar, his vision clouded by tears of guilt.  _ I can’t believe I said those things to Meouch. The poor guy’s sensitive as it is, and I yelled at him even though he was just telling me he cared about me. What the fuck is wrong with me? Is this why Computer Wife left me? It has to be. There’s no way anyone would stay with someone like me, not if this is the way I treat my friends. _

He sat down in the first chair he saw.

_ I don’t even drink, what the hell am I  doing here? _ But, deep down, he knew. He was running from confrontation.  _ What would I even say to Meouch when I see him again? An “I’m sorry” wouldn’t do shit. I’ve hurt him too much for something like that to help. It’s hopeless._

Sung was pulled back to reality as he noticed that the bartender was snapping in front of his face. “Hey, you gonna order something, or just sit there feeling sorry for yourself?” He looked up at the tall, intimidating woman with the Brooklyn accent. “I... guess I’ll have a drink.”

“Sweetheart, this is a bar. You’re going to have to be a little more specific than that.”

“Alright, what would you recommend for someone whose wife just left him two weeks ago, and who is now guilty that he yelled at a friend for caring about him?”

“Alright, that’s a bit to unpack, but uh... it depends on whether you’d like to wallow in your self-pity or just get blackout drunk.”

“I don’t deserve to forget about this. Not now, not ever.”

“Alright, beer it is.”

The bartender pulled a beer mug out from under the bar, and filled it under the tap. She forcefully set it in front of him, and Sung winced. The memory of when he’d done that to Meouch... it wouldn’t go away. It wouldn’t leave him alone, it kept replaying in his mind... Stand, slam, storm off, Meouch bursts into tears. Stand, slam, storm off, Meouch bursts into tears. Stand, slam— Sung felt a warm hand rest on his shoulder. Startled, he turned around and was met by a face he didn’t recognize.

“Who—?”

“Hey. I’m Alyx. What do you say we get out of here?”

“Um... hi. I’m Sung. Yeah, I could use a change of scenery. Where did you have in mind?”

“Oh hell no, you are _not_ leaving without paying!”

Alyx looked over at the bartender and slid a twenty across the counter.

“Will that cover it?”

“Yeah, sure. Whatever.”

“Keep the change, sweetheart.”

“Hey, what the  _fuck_? That’s  _ my _ thing!”

Alyx shrugged and cast an extremely bored and annoyed look at the bartender.

“Hey, uh... Alyx, you never said where we’re going.”

“Oh, you’ll see. Now, if you would, hold myhand for a sec.”

“I don’t see how we’re going to get out the door like this, but okay, sure.”

Sung took hold of Alyx’s hand.

Alyx smirked and replied, “We’re not going out the door.”

Before Sung could ask what that meant, Alyx held up a hand and snapped. Without warning, Sung felt as if his entire body was being compressed into an infinitesimally small point. All of the air in his lungs left him, and his vision went dark.

* * *

Phobos landed softly on the ground in front of the bar. This is where people said they saw Sung. He looked in through the window and... there he was. He saw Sung holding hands with a stranger. The stranger snapped and... what the fuck? They were gone. For a split second, it had almost looked like they got sucked through a tiny portal that had appeared. Phobos had seen a lot of shit before, but... this was bizarre. He tapped his helmet and the comm link with Havve started up. “Hey, Havve? We have a problem.”

* * *

When Sung came to, Alyx was looking down at him with concern, and... he could hear music? He didn’t recognize it, but whatever it was, it was  _ funky_.

“Hey Sung, you alright? I... I probably should have warned you before I did that.”

“What the _fuck_ just happened? And, now that I’m looking around, where the _hell_ are we?!”

“I’ll answer your second question first. We are currently at our destination: Danny Sexbang’s mansion party. As for what happened, I brought us here.”

Sung took a deep breath.

“Alright, I don’t know a ‘Danny Sexbang,’ but that’s besides the point. I figured you brought us here, but why and how the hell did I black out on the way here? How long has it been since we were in the bar?!”

“Alright, so... since you’re already sitting, I’ll tell you. I teleported us here. As for why you blacked out, I forgot to tell you to hold your breath. And, for your last question, it’s been about... three minutes since we were at the bar.”

_ Did... did I hear that right? We fucking teleported here?! How... the actual hell? Y’know what? Fuck trying to understand this, I want to try and have some fun with Alyx tonight.  _ There was just something he couldn’t describe about the way he felt for Alyx. Was it... love?  _ Please no. Not so soon. If I... if I mess this one up, I’m going to have my heart broken before we even get a chance for a second date. _

“Hey, Sung? You still with us in the land of the living?” Alyx waved a hand in front of Sung’s face. “Yeah, I was just kinda thinking about some stuff. It’s uh... It’s not important.” Alyx gave him a look that said “I can tell that you’re lying, but I’m going to pretend that you’re not.” “Alright, shall we?” Alyx held out a hand to Sung, beckoning him to join the party. Sung looked up at Alyx and said, “Alright, but do you promise not to teleport us anywhere if I take your hand?” Alyx seemed surprised by the question, but responded quickly, “Don’t worry, that was a one-time thing. If I do it again, I’ll let you know ahead of time.” Sung stood up and took Alyx’s hand. Together, they walked to the dance floor. This was the happiest Sung had felt in a  very long time.


	8. All Night Forever with Alyx

Sung felt unbelievably happy. He wished this night would never end, that it would go on forever. Having Alyx here in his arms tonight, dancing together... If this was a dream, he didn’t want to wake up. The bright lights, the bedazzled decor, the clamor of the excited partygoers... they all faded away, and all that was left was him and Alyx.

Sung leaned over and whispered into Alyx’s ear. “I’ve been searching for someone like you every night and day of my life. Let’s make this night last... all night forever.” Alyx smiled shyly. “You really fell for me hard, huh? Good thing, because... I fell for you, too. When I first saw you, I knew I wouldn’t be able to forgive myself if I let you get away.” A tear rolled down Alyx’s cheek, and Sung brushed it away. “Don’t worry. I’m crying happy tears right now. Something about this... it just feels so right. Let’s dance for a while, you and me.”Sung was positively beaming as he responded. “I’d love nothing more.” 

* * *

Sung honestly couldn’t say how long they spent dancing. It could have been anywhere from minutes to days. Either way, it didn’t matter to him. He was just happy to spend time with Alyx. He could stare into those blue-grey-green eyes for a lifetime, and he’d be in pure bliss. The way they sparkled and seemed to change color in the light... they were stunning. “Hey, Sung, you coming? Let’s go watch the show, the host just arrived!”  _ Host? Oh, the Danny Sexbang guy you mentioned earlier? I wonder what he’s like. _

They walked off to the side of the large room, apparently watching for the host to walk in through the massive Spanish French doors. When he did... wow. It was a lot to take in. He was positively glittering under the spotlights, and the way the multi-millionaire strode in with such confidence... Sung started in awe as Alyx giggled next to him, clearly enjoying Sung’s first reactions to Danny. This was going to be a fun night.

* * *

Something... something felt off. Alyx leaned into Sung and whispered to him, “I’m going to go and take care of some stuff. I’ll be back in a bit, don’t worry.” Sung was confused. “Wha—?” Alyx laid a finger on Sung’s lips. “Shhhh... It’s fine. Like I said, I’ll be back, don’t worry.”

Alyx looked back at Sung sitting alone at the table, and felt a pang of guilt.  _ No, don’t get that way. Something feels wrong here, there’s a hint of tension hanging in the air. Based on my past experience, I can just tell. Something bad is about to happen, and I need to protect him from it at all costs. I’m going to find what’s going on here. _ Alyx’s military training kicked in, and every step taken was nearly completely silent. Alyx had seen some shit during the military days, but... nothing could have prepared _anyone_ for what was around the corner. There were two extremely angry pandas fighting behind the glass of the arena. Just by looking at the glass, Alyx could tell. This was about to get very dangerous. Alyx silently crept towards a suit of armor and took the spear it was holding.  _ If I want any chance of survival, I’m going to have to take this. Sorry, Danny. I’m sure you’ll understand. _ As Alyx took off towards the room Sung was in, the sounds of glass shattering and people screaming could be heard from behind.  _ Shit. I didn’t think it would happen  **that** fast. Am I even going to make it back to Sung at this rate? _

* * *

Sung scrambled for cover under a nearby table. He’d never seen such vicious pandas in his life. They were wreaking absolute havoc on the mansion, destroying anything and anyone they saw.  _ What happened to them? Why are they so bloodthirsty? Am I going to make it out of this mansion alive? _

Sung saw someone sprinting towards him out of the corner of his eye, and when he turned his head, his eyes widened in shock. Alyx had grabbed a spear and plunged it into the floor boards, using it as a vaulting pole to get over to him. “SUNG, HOLD YOUR FUCKING BREATH, WE ARE GETTING THE HELL OUT OF HERE!” Sung sucked in a large breath as Alyx landed in his outstretched arms. He gave a thumbs up to Alyx, who raised a hand and snapped.

* * *

Phobos walked into the briefing room, and saw Havve and Meouch waiting expectantly. “Hey guys. I’ve got some info on Sung.” He sat down in the nearest chair, and let out a sigh. He tapped his helmet, and it disappeared. “So. I saw something pretty strange happen. I had found Sung at a bar, and was looking inside, and saw him holding hands with with someone. This person snapped, and... they were gone. It almost looked like they got sucked into a tiny portal, actually.” Meouch gave Phobos an intense look. “This person... did they happen to have wavy, dark green hair and wear a black military jacket?”

“Uhhh... yeah. How’d you know, Meouch?”

“Sung should be fine. Let’s not stress.”

“What the— Meouch, what are you talking about?!”

“That was almost definitely Alyx. He was in the military at the same time I was, and he saved my life with his ability more than once. The most memorable was when my ship had been hit, and I was going to crash land. There was very little chance I would have survived, but before I knew it, he was standing next to me. He told me to take his hand, and... we were suddenly back in his ship. If Sung’s with him, he’ll be fine. I’ll see if I can’t get in touch with him through the old comm channels; I’m pretty sure he still monitors them. For now, let’s just sit back and relax.”

Havve cast a doubtful look Meouch’s way, but he decided to trust the instincts of his friend.  _ Poor guy’s had it hard enough. I’m going to let him have this one. _

* * *

Sung saw the room start to blur, and then... they were in the woods. “Hey, Alyx? Where are we?” There was no response. He looked down at Alyx in his arms, and noticed that he was completely limp. He’d blacked out. “Well, shit. That’s not good.”


	9. Where are we?

Sung looked down at the comatose Alyx in his arms again.  _ Please wake up. I don’t know where we are and you’re the only one who could tell me that and or get us out of here. I mean, I like hiking through the woods, but not like this. Not when there is not a path to be seen and it’s the pitch black of night. Either I’m going to have to wait for him to wake up or I’ll need to find us shelter._

As Sung stumbled through the inky darkness, he saw something very large creeping towards them. Its eyes glowed red, like fresh blood. A chill went down Sung’s spine as he felt the gaze of the murderous animal studying them, waiting for its chance to strike.  _ This... this feeling... why do I recognize it? Why is it familiar? Shit, this almost reminds me of when I first met H— _

Without warning, the beast lunged, and Sung could only watch in horror as time seemed to slow down. Thinking nothing of his own safety, he dropped to the ground and shielded Alyx’s unconscious body with his own. Sung bit his lip, trying his best to put on an intimidating face, hoping to possibly scare off the monster born of darkness. It stood before him, unfazed by Sung’s weak attempt. A moonbeam shot through the clouds and illuminated the demon in front of them.

It was Havve. More accurately, it was a horrifyingly sadistic and twisted version of him. Armor rusted, splattered with dried blood, his jaws unhinged, and eyes permanently shining with bloodlust. 

Sung saw this atrocity before him, one that  _dared_ to bear likeness to his friend. It, along with the strong desire to protect Alyx, caused something deep within him to awaken. He looked up at this Havve hailing from Hell, and suddenly, he wasn’t faking the look on his face anymore. He was well and truly ready to destroy this abomination. Sung stood up, a fierce determination burning in his eyes. His core began to shine through the uniform specially designed to conceal it. Energy crackled in the air around Sung as he got into a fighting stance. Cyberdemon Havve began to laugh, a haunting, grating noise, then he finally spoke.

“Interesting. I could’ve sworn I killed you years ago, but yet here you stand before me. I always did enjoy prey that was a challenge to kill!”

“Havve... what happened to you?”

“Oh? You know my name? How intriguing, I haven’t heard it in a very long time. I’ll have to torture you a bit to find out how you know it. Lucky for you, that means you get to live for a bit longer.”

“You were completely normal yesterday! Seriously, what the fuck happened?!”

“Yesterday I was normal... wait, you don’t happen to be from another dimension where I’m not like this, do you?”

He shook with the excitement as he awaited Sung’s response.

“I... Maybe? I don’t  _think_ we traveled between dimensions but... it’s possible.”

“Oh, so you’re even rarer prey than I initially thought! This is going to be fun when I get to rip you to bloody shreds in front of your friend that you’re trying so valiantly to protect! It’s adorable, the anger in your eyes, the idea that you might somehow be able to defeat me. Do you have any idea what my body count is? I’ll give you a hint, it’s over 8 digits!”

Sung realized there was no reasoning with this... monstrosity that had the audacity to call itself Havve. He took a deep breath, and prepared to attack. He didn’t have a weapon, or even anything to shield himself with, but still, he was ready to throw everything he had at this horror. With this final bit of doubt eliminated from his mind, his core shone even brighter, suddenly vaporizing the fabric covering it. Sung looked down, stunned, as the beam of energy that shot out of his chest... began to swirl around him, bathing him in raw power. A smile crept onto Sung’s face as he felt speed and strength pour into his body. This rush of energy, the power coursing through his veins... he wouldn’t be defeated. He would protect Alyx, no matter what. Sung stared up at the sadistic killer in front of him. He would grant this monster a quick death.

Sung made the first move and charged forward, focusing this newfound power into his feet. He prepared to high kick, bracing himself for the pain that awaited him when his foot connected. He drove his foot directly into the spot where Havve’s power source should have been. Sung’s eyes widened in surprise as his foot crushed the empty cavity in Havve’s chest. The robot looked down at him with amusement.

“You really  _do_ know me in another dimension, don’t you? Well, unfortunately for you, my power source isn’t located there anymore. I hope you enjoyed the free hit, because now it’s my turn.”

Havve’s hand moved with lightning speed, and grabbed Sung’s foot. Sung screamed out in agony as the bones in his ankle were slowly crushed with a sickening crunch. White-hot pain shot through his body, but he had to keep going. He had to keep fighting for Alyx. Trying to ignore the unbelievable pain in his foot, he got back into a fighting stance.

Alyx opened his eyes, unsure of where he was, or what was happening. He looked up, disoriented, and saw Sung engaged in combat with a nightmare creature. Alyx looked closer and saw that Sung’s ankle had been horrifyingly damaged, and a fine blood mist was spraying from it.  _How... how did he get hurt so badly? Why didn’t I wake up until now? Fuck! I need to do something._ Alyx pushed himself up off the ground, and shakily began to stand. He wasn’t fully conscious yet, but he’d be damned if he was just going to sit there and watch Sung suffer.  _This ability takes a lot of energy and focus. Please hold on for a few more minutes, Sung. Please._ Alyx closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He reached out with his arms crossed, as if holding twin blades to shield himself. He opened his eyes and exhaled as he ripped his combat knives from the pocket dimension. They shone with an otherworldly aura, sharp enough to cut through bone with ease. He preferred not to use these if he had a choice, but right now, nothing mattered but protecting Sung. Alyx crouched and jumped into the air silently, landing behind Havve. He was going to end this.

Sung threw a punch with all of his remaining strength, and Havve didn’t even bother trying to stop it.

“Really? I thought you’d be more fun to play with than  _this_. Give up now and I’ll end your life quickly, a favor I don’t usually grant to my victims. You fought for your friend with everything you had, but I can tell, you’re in no condition to keep going. If you choose to keep fighting me, I’ll slowly break every bone in your body and let you bleed out here, in the middle of nowhere. If your friend tries to help, I’ll do the same to him, and you can enjoy your last torturous hours of life together.”

“You...  _bastard_ ... How _dare_ you... call yourself... Havve? You’re... a monster,” Sung panted, trying not to collapse from the pain.

Havve looked behind Sung, and noticed that the other human was gone. Maybe he’d have some fun tonight, after all. But first, he’d take care of the nuisance in front of him. Havve swiftly punched Sung in the gut, and he finally went down. Havve looked down in disdain at the pathetic bloody mess on the ground in front of him. Sung struggled to breathe as he choked on the blood he was coughing up. “You’ve pissed me off, so now you die.” Sung looked up helplessly as the robot’s foot pressed into his chest, cracking his ribs. He gasped, trying desperately to hold onto life as excruciating pain ripped through his body. His core... his core was starting to crack under the immense pressure. He was going to die, and his last moments would be spent in pain and fear.

“Hey, asshole. You really shouldn’t let your guard down around me. This is where it ends. I wish I could give you a slower, more fitting death, but I need to take care of him right now. For this reason alone, I will give you a swift end.”

Havve whipped around to catch a glimpse of his assailant, but it was two late. Alyx’s blades sliced through the murderous robot’s neck, severing all kinds of sparking mechanisms. The lights in his eyes began to dim as his head tumbled to the ground. The last thing he saw before he died was Alyx’s boot crushing his head, disgust and contempt evident on the man’s face.

Alyx pushed the still-standing body off of Sung and cradled him in his arms. Sung winced from the pain, and he felt warm water dripping onto his face. He opened his eyes, and saw that Alyx was crying over him.

“I’m... okay...” he rasped.

“No you’re not. We need to get you medical attention, and fast. I’ll bring us there.”

“Alyx, wait... how’re you going to get us back to our home dimension? I know you got us here, but—“ he coughed up more blood and gave Alyx a pleading look.

“I’ll get us back, I promise. Just make sure to hold your breath, I don’t know how much worse you’ll get if you get knocked out from the trip back.”

Sung nodded weakly. Alyx made sure he had a secure grip on Sung, and the forest spun, suddenly replaced by the entrance of the band’s ship. All his energy spent, Alyx collapsed, Sung still in his arms.  _Please. Please get to us before he dies..._ Alyx lost consciousness.


	10. A Warm Welcome

Meouch’s mane blew in the wind as he stared up at the stars in the midnight sky. He traced the constellation Leo with a claw, wistfully thinking of the times he spent on his home planet. _Learning to play bass with my dad... those were the times, man._ Meouch rubbed up against the scratching post on the open rec area, trying to scratch an itch. _Almost, almost... Fuck, that’s the spot! I’ve been trying to get it for days!_ He let out a low purr, enjoying his well-deserved alone time. Satisfied, he went back to basking in the starlight. Meouch was so relaxed that he almost dozed off right there, under the peaceful sky. But of course, it just wasn’t to be. His ears twitched as they picked up a sound he hadn’t heard since his military days. A low sizzling noise, like someone was using an arc welder on the fabric of reality. He almost dismissed it as just being his imagination, but then he felt that telltale ripple in space and time. His eyes shot open, and he knew. _Alyx. He’s here._

Meouch was immediately ecstatic. After all, he’d be able to give his old military bud and Sung a hug as they walked in the door. He had no doubts that both of them had made it back in one piece. Come on, this was the man that had saved his life on multiple occasions. His tail was held high, and the tip twitched ever so slightly as he sauntered through the halls and made his way towards the entrance. He made sure his claws were retracted so he wouldn’t hurt them on accident when he hugged them. That’d be a real downer. _Wait... why aren’t they in here by now? I took my time to get here because I’m in a good mood, and I don’t think I missed the sound of the door opening. Maybe they’re trying to surprise me? Alyx should know by now that I can tell when he arrives using his ability, it’s not exactly very inconspicuous. Whatever, I appreciate the effort._  
Meouch stood in front of the door, listening for any sounds that might coming from the other side. It was dead silent out there. _Doc usually gets a bit antsy when he’s trying to surprise someone, it’s weird that I can’t hear him drumming is fingers or pacing out there. Is something wrong out there? Fuck, I hope not._  
He opened the door and looked out. Surprisingly, nobody was standing out there. _Are they around the corner or_ — Meouch glanced around and his gaze landed on the crumpled figures on the ramp. His eyes began to adjust to the darkness, and he looked closer. Alyx was holding Sung who... “HOLY _SHIT_ WHAT THE HELL _HAPPENED_ , ALYX?!” There was no response. He was unconscious. _What the hell did this to them? Alyx is one tough motherfucker, so what kinda monster did they face off against that they’re in this bad of condition?_  
Meouch sprinted as fast as he could to the emergency call button. There was no time to grab the hammer, he just slammed his paw through the glass, gritting his teeth at the pain of the shards cutting into him. Sung’s prerecorded message blared over the intercoms. “ ** _ATTENTION: THIS IS AN EMERGENCY. STAND BY FOR FURTHER INFORMATION._** ” Meouch shouted frantically into the microphone. “WE HAVE TWO GRAVELY INJURED OUT HERE ON THE ENTRANCE RAMP, GET HERE AS FAST AS YOU CAN!”  
He ran back to Sung and Alyx, and knelt down on the ground next to them. Alyx opened his eyes, and it took him a few seconds to recognize Meouch. A weak smile spread across his face. “Hey, Meouch. Hate to bother you, but we uh... we ran into something pretty nasty. That _demon_... I killed it, but not before it almost killed Sung. I’m so sorry I couldn’t do more.” 

Havve woke up from sleep mode to the sound of the alarm. _Fuck, what now?_ He listened to the message repeating on the intercom, and his eyes shifted to purple. _Two gravely injured... SHIT, that’s probably Sung and Alyx!_ He ran to the medical bay, hurriedly threw on his scrubs, and grabbed two stretchers. As he raced towards the entrance, he tapped into the camera system. _I can see Meouch crouching over them, but not much else._ He slowed to a halt as he got to the ramp. Meouch moved to the side, and that's when it happened.  
Alyx noticed Havve and held more tightly onto Sung, who yelped out in pain, still unconscious. He shakily raised his knife and pointed it at Havve. " _You._ You did this to him." Havve and Meouch looked at him in confusion. Meouch cocked his head and asked, "Alyx, what are you talking about? Havve's been here this whole time, and he’d never hurt Sung— at least, not on purpose.”  
"Even if that’s the case, there’s no way I’m letting him near Sung. Not after what I fucking saw back there.”  
He took a few shaky breaths, eyes wide with fear.  
“I’m going to... protect him... no matter wha—“  
Alyx went limp as he slipped back into unconsciousness. Meouch reached over and gently pulled the blade from Alyx's grasp. "Alright, how should we move them? Well, better question, what condition are they in?"  
"I did a quick scan on them when I got out here, and Sung is in pretty bad shape. His ribs are broken, and his ankle looks like it got crushed by something disturbingly similar to my hand. Alyx looks mostly fine, but I do see some fractures in his arms. Let’s get Sung first, since he’s the most injured.” “Alright, Havve. How do you want to do this?” “You grab his legs, I’ll try to lift him from his shoulders.”  
They gently lifted Sung out of Alyx’s arms, and carried him to one of the stretchers waiting in the entryway. He whimpered as they set him down, but still appeared to be out cold.  
Next was Alyx. They picked him up in much the same way, and once they got him into the bed, it was time to go.  
“Meouch, you take Alyx, I’ll get Sung.”  
They ran as fast as they could down the hall, being careful not to jostle their patients too much. They’d be cutting it close, for sure.  
They reached the medical bay, and once they got the two unconscious men all hooked up to the equipment, they breathed a sigh of relief. Havve looked down at Sung, and noticed something with a start. Sung’s core was cracked— no, nearly shattered. _I don’t know the specifics of his core, but... I know that shit is strong. When I asked him about it, he said it’s similar to polycarbonate. Whatever the case may be, I do know that his core is like a vital organ for him, he’d die if it was damaged beyond repair. I’ll have to take my chances and try to fix it._ He turned his head slightly towards Meouch. “The medical bay has a copy of the up-to-date disaster files, right? You were the one who pushed for us to make those plans for worst-case scenarios.”  
“Uhhh... Yeah, that’s what I was doing before the Sung stuff went down. I got interrupted, so not all of the files are there.”  
Havve winced. “When you say ‘not all of the files are there...’”  
“Don’t worry, Sung’s are all there. I think it’s just a couple of yours, actually.”  
The tension in Havve’s shoulders began to ease up a bit. “Alright, I’ll go grab them. In the meantime, you sit down and, if you can manage it on your own, please wrap your paw up. I don’t think I could handle taking care of all three of you by myself.”  
Meouch nodded and pulled the drawer open with his good paw. He grabbed some bandages and antibiotic gel, and got to work. 

Havve walked down the hall, plagued by his worries about Sung and Alyx. _Alyx... his reaction to seeing me... why did he have that look in his eyes? He saw me as a threat— no, a monster. What the fuck happened to them? Sung’s foot... the outline of the boot pressed into his chest... Alyx’s hostility towards me... I don’t like where these facts point. It’s almost like... no. There’s no way they... I thought Meouch said Alyx only had teleportation abilities, but… there’s really no denying what I felt. I keep tabs on the dangerous versions of myself from different timelines, just to make sure they don’t escape, or do anything to damage other timelines. I definitely felt one of them die while I was in sleep mode. It was the version of me that caused the apocalypse: XK-9. If that’s what they ran into… Sung might be in much worse condition than I originally thought. Shit, this is a lot to take in._  
Havve leaned up next to the filing cabinet, and took a deep breath. _I can’t let this shit get to me like this. I need to focus on helping Sung and Alyx. I can have my mental breakdown later. Right now I have to set this shit aside and do my job as a doctor._  
He opened Sung’s drawer, and pulled out the file for his core. It had to have been at least two hundred pages long, but it had a table of contents. The sections were: Damages and Repairs, Moderate to Extreme Troubleshooting, and a sealed section simply labeled “[REMOVAL]” in red. He flipped to the first section, and found what he was looking for. As he got to the end of the section, he sucked in a breath. This was bad. Very bad.  
_”If core glass is shattered, Sung will have about four hours left until he dies. To keep this from happening, the glass must be replaced. Regular glass may be used, but it is not recommended, as it will only last about 8 hours before needing to be replaced again. Suggested replacement materials (ordered from most to least suitable) include: polycarbonate, diamond, sapphire, acrylic, and laminated tempered glass. **Warning** : If the core glass is removed in order to be replace it, Sung’s survival time will be cut roughly in half. For this reason, it is strongly recommended that the glass be removed only immediately before surgery, and no earlier.”_


End file.
